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The Congress' attempt to play victim in Parliament over dismissal of its government in Uttarakhand was thwarted by the NDA, which hit back at the principal opposition party for compromising national security in the Ishrat Jahan case.The face-off between the Congress and the BJP over Ishrat

The Congress' attempt to play victim in Parliament over dismissal of its government in Uttarakhand was thwarted by the NDA, which hit back at the principal opposition party for compromising national security in the Ishrat Jahan case.

The face-off between the Congress and the BJP over Ishrat Jahan's encounter and President's rule in Uttarakhand rocked the Parliament on day one during the second half of the Budget session.

Both the ruling and the opposition parties have hardened their position over the two issues as they made full-throated allegations against each other. BJP lawmaker Kirit Somaiya raked up the Ishrat Jahan issue in the Lok Sabha accusing a former UPA home minister of playing with national security by seeking to dub a terrorist as a martyr.

He alleged that the former home minister (P Chidambaram) had dubbed Ishrat as a terrorist in the first affidavit but changed it in the second affidavit.

In a series of tweets, Chidambram defended his decision.

"The affidavit controversy is only to divert attention from the real issue in the Ishrat Jahan case. Real issue is whether there was fake encounter & whether four people already in custody were killed in that fake encounter," he tweeted.

Ishrat Jahan and three other accomplices were killed in an encounter by the Crime Branch of Ahmedabad Police on June 15, 2004, up on the allegation that they were LeT operatives and plotting to kill then Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi.

The Congress has argued that the saffron party wants to deliberately block the case as it would reach Prime Minister Modi, who was the then Gujarat chief minister and BJP chief Amit Shah, who was the state home minister. "Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah need to answer as to why are they trying to bypass the judicial findings of Metropolitan Court,

Ahmedabad and Division Bench of Gujarat High Court. Why is the Government of India and the government of Gujarat not sanctioning the prosecution of officers found responsible for the fake encounter of Ishrat Jahan and the accomplices? Why is the PM and the BJP President trying to block an ongoing trial and blatantly interfering with the judicial process? What is it that they seek to hide or are scared of?" Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said.

The Congress has also negated the BJP's charge that Chidambaram changed the second affidavit at the instance of party chief Sonia Gandhi. While the BJP is highlighting the Ishrat Jahan case against the Congress, the opposition party is in an aggressive mood over the dismissal of its government in Uttarakhand and has made it clear it will not let go of the issue easily.

"Uttarakhand issue is very important for us," Congress spokesperson Jairam Ramesh said after the party did not allow Rajya Sabha to function over the issue.

Congress strategists said the party is also pinning its hope on disqualification of the nine MLAs as it would facilitate the trust vote as ordered by the high court on April 29.